It's Never Just Black and White
by alabamagirl1997
Summary: Sakura Haruno left her village at eighteen, becoming an S-classed criminal in just four years of being on her own. She was hardened by her new, lonely life but when the Akatsuki decide that she would be a valuable asset, who will she meet in her new road of life? What happens when her reasons for leaving in the first place are brought out in the light? EXTREME DEISAKU LOVE STORY!
1. Prologue

Prologue- Sakura

She wasn't the same girl that she used to be. The old Sakura cried when the wind blew and she had a terrifying fear of failure and rejection. She hid behind people and was utterly _weak_ on the inside and out. She was honestly a fucking wimp. The new Sakura is honestly the farthest thing from honest.

"Haruno, we have orders by the Hokage to bring you back to the Hidden Leaf immediately. Permission has been given to use force if needed," an ANBU with a bear mask read robotically from his defensive position in front of the pinkette.

If anyone from the outside could possibly look in on the situation right then, they would assume by the thirty something ANBU in the forest clearing that the person being hunted down would be some notorious hulk of a man who slit throats for a living. While Sakura Haruno is very notorious for her young twenty two years of age, most wouldn't imagine her to be much as she sat with her back against a tree with a book in one hand and an apple in another.

Her long, pink hair was pulled over one shoulder in an elegant braid while her short black shorts and gray t-shirt left very few curves on her body to imagination. She had become slimmer since leaving her village four years prior, gaining more muscle to add to the already enormous list of advantages she had on any average shinobi.

A smirk appeared on her plump, pink lips but she still failed to raise her head. "Is that so? Well maybe we can reschedule because I'm a tad bit busy right now. How's next week sound?"

The bear-masked Nin barely contained a growl and he opted for a more offensive position which didn't go unnoticed by the pinkette who glanced up in the slightest bit at his new, harsh tone. "That's not going to work Haruno! You're coming back whether you like it or not!"

All of a sudden, the girl disappeared from her place under the large tree and planted her feet silently behind the Nin who had increasingly gotten on her nerves. She placed a firm, small hand on the junction between his shoulder and neck. "You know, I've been seeing a lot of you bastards lately and I don't think any of you understand the concept that I don't _want _to go with you nor _am _I doing any such thing. I've let you live for every meeting we've conveniently had but I don't know if I'm going to be so lenient this time. Why can't you all just leave me _alone_?" Her tone was sickeningly sweet as if she were only just an innocent little school girl. The only thing portraying her real emotions were the grip she had on the man and the burning fire in her eyes.

"You _are_ coming with us; you don't have a choice in the matter!" he growled out in rage but didn't dare move. They all knew that her knowledge was beyond vast in just about every subject there was to know in everything Shinobi related. She could kill anyone with one touch of her finger and her Missing Nin status proved that she would have no qualms about doing so.

Sakura hummed low to herself and appeared to be genuinely bothered about something for a semi-moment. "Well, that sure is a shame. I'll make sure to leave a few of your men alive so they can deliver a little message to your dear _Hokage_. I want to be left alone and I won't hesitate to eliminate anyone who stands in my way. I've warned you all once and I told you the first time that that was the only warning you would get. You should've listened."

There was no struggle nor were there screams of pain and agony. No blood was spilt in the process of killing all but five ANBU in a span of ten seconds and as she suddenly appeared under the tree in a relaxed manner, one of the remaining Nin laughed lowly. His boar mask shifted slightly in the process. "Isn't this ironic?"

Sakura smirked as she raised the apple to her lips. "Ironic that the only survivors are the ones actually from Konaha? I think not. You should relay to Tsunade that next time she needs to borrow a shitload of ANBU from other villages that Suna isn't the best. They've been slipping over the past few years."

One of the other Nin stepped forward with an obvious slouch. "So you _have_ been improving. I'm impressed," he said, his spiky silver hair sticking up in odd directions.

Jade eyes narrowed. "I wasn't aiming to impress you, _Kaka-sensei_."

He gently peeled the porcelain shield away from his face to reveal a single familiar eye, slanted headband, and navy blue mask. Kakashi crossed his arms over his chest as an obvious frown slid onto his face. "I'm aware. Have you thought about coming back yet?"

"The fact that you're asking me that means that you don't even know why I left yet. Just wait, Sensei; once you know, you will leave your village in a heartbeat and be begging for forgiveness at my feet. Don't think I've forgotten how our last encounter ended." Sakura took the last bite of her apple and tossed it with a flick of her wrist, watching as it rolled slowly until it touched Kakashi's boot. Her eyes were downcast while her voice dipped. "I didn't betray my village, Hatake. You would do well to remember that."

The boar-masked ANBU suddenly ripped his own identity shield off of his face to reveal a quite livid Yamato. "Don't you dare speak such lies! We were your friends, Sakura, and you left us behind to kill and destroy everything you could get your hands on. Do you understand what you've driven the Hokage to? All she does anymore is drink until she can barely breathe. Naruto isn't his happy self anymore and neither is anyone else. You were the core to the whole damn village and you gave it all up on a fucking whim!"

The words didn't evoke anything but more emotionlessness as the girl bent at the waist to pick up the forgotten book and small, tan bag off of the forest floor. She swung it onto her shoulder quickly before piercing her past teachers with her serious eyes. "I'm sorry for the repercussions of my leave but you will understand when you find out for yourselves."

"Why, Sakura; why can't you just tell us?" Kakashi asked. Anyone else would think that he was just asking her a question out of curiosity but she had known him for so long that the silent begging behind his voice was imminent.

Her head tilted back, allowing her pink braid to slide off her shoulder and into the air. A sad smile graced her lips while she watched the white clouds high in the brilliant blue sky. "Since when does anyone ever believe an S-classed criminal?" And with that, she was gone.

...

Sorry it's so short; usually my chapters are very long but I just needed to set the basis for the story and reveal just enough for everyone to see where most of the loyalties are at the beginning of the story. I will have the next chapter out by Tuesday. Thank you!


	2. Chapter 1- On the Run

Chapter 1- On the Run

Sakura squinted up at the brightly shining sky and vaguely wondered how high the temperature really was. She had been traveling along the border of Fire Country and Tea Country, bouncing back and forth with the objective of getting away from the Eastern Coast line. She wouldn't want to be near the village she had been staying at since none of the shinobi there seemed too fond of the fact that she killed their leader in two seconds flat on the day of a huge fish festival. She was adamant that it wasn't her fault since honestly he shouldn't have had his hand up her skirt the night before.

She didn't really have a place to go so her adventures were mainly based around missions that she picked up from random villages and places that she needed to hide from for a few months at a time due to getting rid of important people (mostly perverted political figures). If everything went her way she would be able to make it to Iwagakure by the end of summer and hopefully lay low until spring of the following year.

Sakura had a slash through her Hidden Leaf Village Hitae Ate on her own terms but that didn't mean that she wanted to live out the rest of her days always on the run. When she stopped for lunch that day until a large tree, she counted that it had been over two and a half years since she even had a week of relaxation. Killing the Lightning Country Daimyo did have its consequences after all.

With a sigh, she pulled out the last bit of food she had left; a severely bruised apple as well as an almost-empty bottle of water that had gone too quickly in her opinion. She had refilled it the day before as she crossed paths with a small stream but didn't realize how quick it would be utilized in the blazing heat of summer.

The kunoichi quickly consumed what was left of her rations and calculated silently in her head that the next best place to stop for food without the risk of being discovered would be Takumi in Rivers Country; of course after she managed to get across Kawa Pass.

She huffed at the very thought of it all. Going across large bodies of water on foot meant fisherman reporting her to their village leaders and having a ton of shinobi trailing her for even longer with the pure intent of curiosity that soon would turn hostile at the discovery of her true identity. Surprisingly, it had happened many times to her before.

Just as she went to sling her bag over her shoulder again, a sudden flare of chakra from the direction that she had just come alerted her to someone approaching her position quite quickly. A frown instantly replaced what had been a content smile just moments before. There was no way that the Nin from the small fishing village had caught up to her already; she was too fast for that.

Sakura knew full well that she could obliterate anyone that got into her but that didn't mean that she exactly wanted to do so. With her mind made up to avoid the confrontation altogether, she pushed chakra into her legs and took off at a speed that was normal for her but probably insane for even the average Jounin. She didn't survive for four years on her own with the same skills as her eighteen year old self. No, he had to teach herself a few things.

Being faster than gravity itself was one of them.

As the chakra slowly faded away again, a smile reappeared on Sakura's face and she continued on and the sky darkened over the passing time of day. Her favorite time of day was approaching and she reveled in the feeling of cool air pressing against her skin. She absolutely _adored _the night but she didn't know whether it was because of the added protection it gave her or the stars that always twinkled above her. The night was when she could hide herself in plain sight and semi-relax to regain lost energy.

After traveling under the dark sky for over an hour, she found an area dense with trees and settled herself comfortably on the ground. Just like she did every night, she used a shielding jutsu to create a barrier around her, enabling the use of chakra within a few feet of the area without others being able to sense it. She then continued to flood chakra to her ears so that she could everything around her for miles.

It was always alarming at first when she began her new life alone but the noises of whistling wind and howling animals soon became background noises and anything else became a threat. In her line of work it was better to shoot a kunai first and investigate after the offending person was dead and unable to harm her later.

Once upon a time she had been a deep sleeper but now if it wasn't a natural sound of nature, it was waking her up and putting her on the defense. She was in the bingo in every country and had a bounty as large as the Akatsuki's for her head so dangers were always right around the corner. Every Nin she happened upon was considered a threat now instead of a friendly stranger as they once were. She was tough and mysterious and a damned force to be reckoned with. She was a legend.

If Sakura listened close enough, she could hear the waves coming from the West; the direction she had planned to go in the morning to get across the large body of water. It would take her all day to get across it if she wasn't being reckless which she could no longer afford to be.

It took three and a half long hours for the pinkette to finally fall asleep, which just pissed her off even more when, before the sun was even in the sky, the same chakra from yesterday alarmed her. This time it was accompanied with another that was just as abnormally strong.

They were obviously trying to smuggle their signatures but for someone as chakra attuned as Sakura, it was like trying to keep water in a bottomless bowl; impossible.

With haste, she shoved back the sleep that was still fogging her thoughts and rushed towards the direction of the waves. All her effort went into keeping the shielding jutsu up, running as fast as she could, and keeping chakra in her ears so that she could hear if the two Nin got any closer to her.

She reached Kawa Pass just as the sun began to shine behind her but the chakra signatures didn't disappear until she was already halfway across the Sea. Having to actually _run _from someone when usually all she had to do was hide was unnerving to her. Never once was anyone fast enough to catch up to her but she found herself not being able to even get a full night's sleep because of those pursuing her.

Sakura finally made it on land again as the sun was ducking behind the trees of River Country. She knew how damn careful she had to be until reaching her destination with the Land of Fire, her homeland, just over three miles away from her. Kami knows they were diligent as hell with capturing her and bringing her back just as they were with Sasuke such a long time ago and that was not an option she was willing to take.

Even though the two unknown Nin had disappeared suddenly when reaching Kawa, she didn't want to risk them catching up to her at night so despite her tiredness, she traveled on under the moon and stars with sweat glistening on her brow and hands shaking from hunger, exhaustion, and using so much chakra continuously. Her ears were tingling from the intensified hearing that had been going on for so long and her head ached for trying to suppress all the chakra she was drawing inside of her. Overall, she felt like utter shit.

"What I would do for some freaking ramen right now…" she muttered under her breath, trying to focus only on her feet piercing the ground and taking off again.

An image came to her then, just as her eyes passed over her sore feet. There was one mission in particular that Team Seven had to complete about a year before she left the Leaf that had honestly been too easy for their level of expertise already. Maybe that's why Tsunade had given it to them in the first place; Sakura had been a workaholic, Kakashi was a mission fiend and only took one night off between his arrival back to the village and the new mission that he would pick up the following morning while Sasuke and Naruto were constantly arguing, training, and attempting to kill each other. Team Seven needed a break.

There was a stamp on the scroll labeled 'B-RANK' but even that status was a little strong. All they had to do was protect and deliver a religious box to a temple in the Village Hidden Under the Moon. They all took it deathly serious at first and barely spoke a word. The four would travel for most of the day, only stopping to eat and drink water but when the mission passed its sixth day and there still had been no attacks by any other Nin, the true purpose of the getaway became clear. It was supposed to be a leisurely activity.

They stopped and made camp by a ten-meter wide stream and stayed for the whole day, not willing to travel on any more when they weren't exactly in a rush. Sakura was the first to emerge from her tent with a little bikini on, obviously making Naruto drool in an instant. She hadn't hesitated to jump in the water and splash her sensei that avoided it and chose a shady tree not too far away to whip out his book and pretend to read; really just watching his students relax for the first time in a while. It had taken Naruto two hours of pestering and begging to finally get Sasuke in the water and if anybody asked he would say that he was having a terrible time but Sakura didn't miss the small smile that graced his lips.

That was the last time that they had all had fun together outside of the village. After that they would meet up at Ichiraku's once a month if lucky but even that wasn't for too long. No one had the time to stop and hang out anymore. Team Seven was drifting apart.

Sakura quickly stopped her mind from going in that direction because she _knew_ what it would lead to and she didn't want to think again of why she betrayed her village. She didn't want to remember anything about the three years before her. She just wanted to live now and in the moment because everything else was too painful.

After reaching the top of a large hill, she looked down at the shining lights of Takumi. She didn't waste any time on the marvelous view but instead weaved in and out of the trees and sped towards the small village. All that was running through her mind was _sleep, sleep, and sleep._ She hadn't had any reason to push herself this hard in a while and so going two days without any sleep and living off of only a few hours of sleep on top of that wasn't as thrilling as it sounded. It made her feel drugged.

The kunoichi was able to slip past the border without any problem which she suspected anyway and it only took her twenty minutes to find an acceptable place to stay for the night. She made a list of things that she needed to buy tomorrow in the market before leaving as she wordlessly walked into a small, blue building.

It didn't take much to ignore the looks given to her by the perverted assholes sitting at the bar across from the check-in desk. The air was suffocating her from the thick, strong smoke that rose like soft, dark whispers from the cigars. The scent of alcohol stung her strong nose but she pushed it all back and with an obviously irritated smile, gathered the attention of the woman reading a magazine.

"One room on an empty floor," She commanded, unconsciously scanning the room for every detail and sign of danger that it held in its dark corners. The woman with short black hair gave a sort of scoffing noise in the back of her throat which only gained her a glare.

"Sorry ma'am, this isn't some five star resort where…" the woman trailed off at the fairly large wad of cash that was slowly passed over the counter to her. Sakura's eyes never left hers and words didn't have to be exchanged for the message to be clear as day. _You don't quite have a choice so take the damn money._

She glanced around nervously with her wide, green eyes before slipping her pale hand on the table top and snatching the money into her palm. It was obvious that she was a civilian just by the way she looked at everything. She didn't bother to pay attention to the details of anything which is one of the most important things to do as a Nin.

As their eyes met for the last time, Sakura allowed a sinister-like smirk to tilt her lips upward and she leaned forward more. "Now, I'm going to need the top floor evacuated immediately and I won't hesitate to take matters… into my own hands, if you know what I mean."

The woman swallowed harshly and directed to darted gaze to her shoes instead of the feral female in front of her. "Well, no one is up there now so you can just go ahead up."

"And if anyone ever comes asking about a pink-haired girl?"

The civilian wrung her hands together in anxiousness. "I've never seen anyone with pink hair in my life," she replied, secretly praying that this encounter would end sooner rather than later. She sighed with relief at the sincere smile that shined back at her from her answer.

"Very good," Sakura said, snatching up the door key from behind the counter. "Have a great night," she called teasingly over her shoulder. It used to make the pinkette sick to have to scare people constantly like this but it grew on her over time after she realized that it was the most efficient way to get what she needed. Most people didn't like being scared too much.

The Inn wasn't exactly old but it wasn't new either with its peeling wallpaper and squeaky floorboards. There was the main floor which had the bar on it, the second floor, and the third which was where she was conveniently going to be housing for the night.

It had always been in her better interest to rent out whole floors when risking a stay in villages to lessen the anxiety she had at close proximity to others who might be tracking her. Everyone he met nowadays were enemies to her before she even knows their names. It was sad how distrustful she had become.

With a heavy sigh, she finally made it to the top floor and found the door that she had grabbed the key for. After shouldering her way in and slamming it behind her, she wasted no time in shuffling across the hard wood floor and searching out the small bathroom that was attached to the bedroom.

She still never grew out of her distaste for being dirty. It didn't bother her anymore as much as it used to in the beginning but it was heavenly when she would find somewhere warm to shower every once in a while.

Sakura threw her bag on the dirty, tiled floor and reached around the stained, pastel colored curtain to turn the water on. Steam filled the small room as she slowly stripped her clothes off and dropped them to the ground with clear disgust. They smelled, as did she, and getting them cleaned before heading off tomorrow was just another reason to stay there longer than she originally intended for.

As she caught her reflection briefly in the fogging mirror, she no longer saw bright, innocent eyes but those of a killer. She saw the face that tricked and deceived hundreds of civilians into thinking that she was a homeless traveler just to get food when she didn't have the money. A pale, thin face that was framed with pink locks that feigned ignorance and predictability. She lost the count of how many men lost their lives by her hands because they tried to take advantage of who they thought would be easy enough to take over. She was a true kunoichi at heart; a Nin who could win the hearts of millions but shoot them all down in mere seconds. She was a killer.

Sakura tore her eyes away from her reflection and turned to the shower, slowly relaxing as she slid under the warm jets of water. A loud sigh escaped her lips and she leaned against the wall while every muscle in her body seemed to loosen more and more.

It had been so, so long since she was last able to take a hot shower since cold natural streams was all that had been safe lately. Her reputation was known by everyone and there wasn't a single Nin that she had come across that hadn't tried to blow her location. They were all money hungry assholes anyway, only looking out for themselves.

None of them seemed to accept that she was just trying to live her life too.

She stayed in that shower until the water turned cold and her limbs were too numb to hold her up any longer. She stepped out of the tub slowly and wrapped a cheap towel around her but didn't bother to brush her hair from her exhaustion. She was so ready to just pass out that all she remembered doing was sealing the room from intruders and ripping her towel off so that she could slip into the bed.

One kunai was under her pillow and the other clutched tightly in her right hand as she lay down and fell asleep almost instantly, unprepared for what was to come the following day.


	3. Chapter 2- Realizations

Chapter 2- Friend or Foe?

She knew from the second that she woke up that something wasn't right. It was too quiet and if there was anything that Sakura knew it was that silence meant death. Silence meant that there were no people walking the street and talking like the day before and there were no men gambling in the bar downstairs. It meant that she had better get her ass out of bed and protect herself.

With the haste that only a kunoichi could possibly possess, she quickly tore the sheets away from her body and jerked on the first articles of clothing that her hands touched. With a sigh, she realized how disappointed she was that she wouldn't be able to clean her clothes and mentally noted to completely obliterate her opponent for that particular reason.

After a quick glance at the clock, she cursed her attackers even more. Two-thirty was just a little too early for all this to go down. She had only gotten a few hours of sleep.

She shielded her chakra completely as she crossed the small room and began shoving objects into her tan bag, making sure to include the small bottles of shampoo and conditioner that had conveniently been placed in the bathroom for any awaiting resident.

Just as she angrily shoved her last shirt into the bag, a knock resounded on her door. She froze, immediately thinking of every window as an exit but knowing that that would never work. Everyone she faced nowadays were strong Nin which meant they weren't stupid enough to not cover all exits first. She had to do this head on.

With a defeated sigh, she slung her bag over her shoulder and pulled her sandals on. "I'm coming," she called out as a louder knock came from her lack of response. It stopped completely at her answer and her mind couldn't help but wander. She was growing more excited with every step she made towards the door, mainly because she couldn't get over how _close_ they got without her noticing. Usually she would know that someone was approaching her from miles away but this person literally made it to her very residence before she noticed a thing. It was impressive in her book.

One of her greatest weapons was nonchalance. It made enemies angry when she could avoid everything they threw at her while she remained calm and collected. She always enjoyed watching them get riled up just because she wouldn't show emotion; it made them slip up in battle.

Because of this method, she had to thoroughly hide her shock at seeing Akatsuki member Sasori standing awkwardly in the middle of the cramped hallways. Outwardly he showed no discomfort but it was fairly easy to tell just by the way he slumped his shoulders that he was rather uncomfortable.

She narrowed her eyes at the black cloak he wore with the signature red clouds and at his _human_ body that she originally had thought to be deceased. "Didn't I kill you?" She questioned with honest curiosity shining in her words.

What was almost close to a smirk twitched on Sasori's face before it was wiped off once more and the emotionless reject was back, brooding over her in what she assumed was his intimidation method. "Something like that."

"Okay," she crossed her arms and put her weight on her right leg. "What can I do for the legendary Akatsuki member? This is such a surprise to see you here!" she announced, watching his every breath for some sort of motivation for the 'visit.'

With a voice as cold as steel, he said, "No, we have been searching for someone and you happen to fit the description perfectly."

The threat underlining his words were very clear but the new Sakura didn't fare well with threats. After all, no one in the past four years had been able to do it twice. "And what do you plan now that you've found me?"

"We take you back to our leader."

Sakura's eyes suddenly narrowed to slits before she was able to stop them. She had been living a rule free life for so long that any order given to her by anyone like Sasori was like a punch to the gut. She hated him already for it. "I don't think I want to go. What now?"

She knew that years ago, this conversation would be suicidal and that Kakashi sensei would be so rearing to kick her ass right now for not listening to orders on top of egging on an S-class criminal but in the moment, she couldn't give two shits to save her life.

Sasori, who appeared annoyed with the way that things were going, moved his hand to the sleeve of his cloak and pulled out a kunai that glinted in the dim lights of the hall. "We take you."

He was completely thrown off for a few seconds when Sakura couldn't help but toss her head back and let out a loud, humorless laugh. When she looked back in his eyes, a sparkle of danger shined brightly and aroused his suspicions that she wasn't quite scared to face him. He briefly wondered if this was why Pein wanted her; because she wasn't afraid and was smart as hell.

Whatever it was, Sasori didn't have enough time to figure it out because the pinkette spit out a quick, "Good luck," before quite literally punching him through a series and walls and out the other side of the building with just one hit.

From the second that her fist met his face Sakura was running towards the opposite side of the hallway from where the stairs were and she was damaging the building even more by putting another hole right where the passage ended. She didn't waste any time launching herself right out from the third story landing and onto the cobblestone street below.

Four chakras flared all at once, two of which she recognized as the ones following her for the past two days, and she took off at a deadly speed, turning into only a blur in the empty village. Blood pumped loudly behind her ears as she pushed herself to run as fast as possible but at the same time she couldn't help but revel in the adrenaline that pulsed through her veins.

She laughed loudly as two figures skid to a halt in front of her and two landed behind her, effectively trapping her in between two buildings that she vaguely recognized as a bakery and another bar. The sobs of happiness bent her in half as she clenched her stomach.

"I-I haven't had this much fun," another series of high-pitched giggles, "in so damn long!"

Sasori's partner, Deidara, quickly defined her as being off her rocker. Here was a kunoichi of only twenty-two that was completely thrilled with the idea of fighting four Akatsuki members. It just wasn't natural.

Despite this, he couldn't help but to instantly become captivated by her small and toned body. He knew that if her name and hair color wasn't known by every shinobi to live then he would just pass her on the street without a second look. She was incredibly beautiful but it didn't look like she could put a dent in a leaf, let alone knocking down entire structures. She was the true definition of art; there on minute and gone the next. She was amazing.

Sakura was completely overjoyed to be in a real fight that it seemed to slip her mind who she was really up against. Granted, it didn't matter that much because she wasn't a weak little girl anymore. Sakura could be up against every member of the Akatsuki and still stand her ground for a while. She was strong. She was smart. She was deadly.

To her right was the infamous Itachi Uchiha, the man whose name was the true definition of fear in almost every person in Konaha. Up close now, she realized that he was rather attractive with his black hair shining in the moonlight. He had absolutely no emotions to show just like Sasori but unlike his partner, Kisame.

The first thing that came to her mind when seeing the shark-man was how happy it would make her to put her medic skills to use again and see his gills through her chakra's point of view. It made her giddy like a kid in a candy store to imagine the discoveries that were practically begging to be made under that skin of his.

Kisame was leaning on his big fancy sword with a wicked grin enhancing the view of his many rows of teeth. No doubt he enjoyed tearing things up with that.

To her left stood Sasori (who didn't look too pleased with bits of ruble and dust all over his cloak, mud in his hair, and the left side of his face swollen) and his partner Deidara.

She had been least expecting to see him standing there with a thoughtful look on his face. It was obvious that he was studying her with intensity as his eyebrows scrunched together in the smallest bit. Just as Itachi was, Deidara was stunningly handsome despite his long, blonde hair.

She faintly recalled from her first year on the run when she studied up on almost every missing Nin there was that this particular man had the bloodline limit. He was the one with the damn mouths on his hands. She wanted nothing more than to probe that too.

Just as her laughs calmed to gentle giggles, Deidara tore his eyes from her as Itachi began to speak. "Don't make this harder than it had to be."

Sakura shrugged her shoulders. "It doesn't have to be hard at all. Just respect my answer and leave it at that."

Deidara briefly wondered if she were suicidal too but pushed that to the back of his mind to worry about later.

"Damn, do you even have an idea of how hard it was to find you? I swear we thought you just drowned instead of crossing Kawa Pass," Kisame announced, clearly impressed with her skills. If he thought hard enough, he could just make out the memory of when they first met and she was only a flat chested, puppy-love induced ten-year old girl. She was nothing like she used to be.

With a grin, Sakura turned to him. "I did well then. I'm honored to have managed to escape from the likes of you. Tell me, how did you find out where I was?"

Kisame grinned back at her. "A fisherman saw you crossing the water and conveniently was talking about it with some buddies at a bar we stopped at. You would've been long gone if it weren't for him."

The shark-man watched in amusement as the kunoichi rolled her eyes and cursed under her breath. "It's always a fucking fisherman giving me up."

He laughed. "Happen often?"

"More than you know."

A sudden soft whistle alerted Sakura and without turning she shot her left hand over her right shoulder and caught a kunai that had been heading straight for her spinal cord. She was inwardly growling at the offender but stayed cool and collected on the outside with a fake-as-hell pouty face.

"Aw Saso-kun, I thought we were just getting along," she cooed, inspecting the weapon that she held softly in her hands.

Kisame doubled over with laughter at the nickname she had given Sasori and Deidara was doing an absolutely horrendous job at muffling his own sniggers. Even Itachi smirked in the slightest way but by the look on Sasori's face, he found nothing humorous in the jab.

"This is not a game, Haruno. We have orders to bring you to Pein and we will accomplish that," the red-head said seriously.

Just as the pinkette was about to respond, a tingling sensation flitted in the back of her head and she instantly whirled around in that direction. The Akatsuki members were long forgotten even as they stared at her with confusion at her adverted attention.

Sakura's eyes narrowed considerably towards the Northeast and she quickly slung her around to the ground as she knelt next to it. The men standing around her knew that it would be the perfect time to capture her but they were too curious as to what suddenly had put her on edge.

Weapons of various sizes were ripped out of the bag and tucked into various folds of her shorts and shirt. Exploding tags were all stuffed into her knee-high sandals and she didn't hesitate to stick and few hundred senbon into her bra right in front of them.

Her eyes never left the horizon as she stood again and tossed the weapon-empty bag to the ground. "Where are the villagers?" she asked suddenly, a strange urgency in her voice.

The anxiousness she felt was quickly passed to the men as they watched the girl that had just been as cool as ice. What would put her on edge so quickly? What worries could she possibly have?

Kisame grunted a little. "They're sleeping under a genjutsu. What concern is it to you?"

Quicker than any of the Akatsuki members could even react, the pinkette was creating a series of hand signs that was quite long for what they originally assumed she was capable of. She was concentrating hard, on what they had no idea. "I'm disabling the bombs that I set up along the shore of the Capitol River. I need all of you to transport the villagers out of here immediately."

Sasori, a little outraged that a girl with _pink_ hair was giving him orders, crossed his arms over his chest. "And what makes you even have the slightest trust that we will do as you say?"

Once she successfully dispelled the bombs, Sakura tied her hair up into a loose ponytail high on her head. A grim expression fell upon her and her muscles tensed up. "Because they will die if you don't take them out of here. I won't make it to the forest before they catch up so damage to the village will be unavoidable. I can't have more blood on my hands than is necessary."

Deidara, who was shocked that the woman who had killed so many actually had _feelings;_ tensed as well as the rest of the Akatsuki and the huge swell of chakra that suddenly hit them like a wall. One thought suddenly ran through his head, _she has a few hundred ANBU on her trail right now, she felt them before we did, and her only concern is the villagers… Who is this girl?_

"NOW!" She suddenly screamed out, her anger getting the best of her. Yes, she had killed many people and yes, it was unforgiveable but she always had her own motives. There was no need for all these villagers to die just because she needed a place to stay for the night.

To her complete surprise, Itachi muttered a silent 'Hai' and disappeared, reluctant teammates behind him. A cool wind breezed through the air and made her shiver slightly. She knew that this fight would be different and would surely bring along some injuries. There were so many people out for her head right then that it would be impossible for her to make it out of there unscathed. She wasn't scared.

She almost laughed at the circumstances that she was in; her ex-village was teaming up with the country in which she killed their Daimyo, to attack and exterminate her. Her name was known by everyone and was always hanging off of someone's tongue yet here she was, defending a village of citizens from her own personal problems. That sounded real evil to her.

Naruto had never been one to stay on the sidelines and be quiet. He had always been the first to blow the Team's position and make the mission ten times harder; now was no exception.

It was almost like a breath of fresh air to see the blonde knucklehead crash through the trees of the forest and stop a little ways from her. She did her best to hide her emotions because Kami knows they were trying to knock her down.

She had seen that particular expression on his face so many times; the very one that had been used on every retrieval mission for Sasuke. He was determined as all get out to bring her back but she wasn't like Sasuke. She would be condemned to death the second her foot passed the borders.

There was a pregnant pause in which Sakura remained like a statue and Naruto's chest heaved from running so fast at such a distance. It didn't take long for the Copy-Nin, Sasuke, Sai, and Yamato to appear at his sides and judgingly glare at her from the invisible border between them.

It was funny to her how much they were blaming her for this whole mess by they didn't even know a thing. In actuality, she was still looking out for them without them even knowing.

More Nin quickly began arriving in the trees behind her original team but they didn't dare step forward yet before this small confrontation was over; a threat from Naruto, no-doubt.

The scratchy cough that filled the air caught her attention once more as Kakashi took the initiating step forward. "I never thought that this would happen, Sakura." He seemed to actually be struggling which was a rare sight for the man that usually had as many emotions as a brick wall.

She had to force the pain back to keep her own voice clear. "Neither did I but things have changed."

He nodded. "Indeed they have."

Naruto pushed Kakashi aside then and squeezed his right hand into a tight fist. "Everyone has seen you except for me since you left and I've been hoping that this has all been a cruel prank. I can't deny it now; you've turned your back on us!" He yelled.

Sakura closed her eyes for a second to control the truth that dared spill from her mouth. She didn't want to hear those words come from him. They upset her. "I have done no such thing. It's the village that I have a problem with."

It surprised her when Sasuke was the next one to jut his chin into the air. "What could you have possibly found out that would have changed anything? You're not special enough to get that far in your career even if you are a snoop to have free reign over the village's records. Stop lying and just tell us why you left. I came back, didn't I?"

They didn't understand; of course they didn't. They never would.

"Sasuke; you're stupid if you think you had any involvement in my departure. I have my reasons and they are much more legitimate than your search for power."

He smirked but it did nothing to hide his anger. "Was it because you were tired of being looked down on? Let me tell you something, _Sakura_; you are still nothing. The only thing that you have going for you is being the Godaime's apprentice." He frowned then, gazing upon her as if she were the dirt on his shoe. "You have no idea what you've driven everyone to."

Sakura's jade eyes darkened. "Did you have any idea what _you_ drove _us_ to? Sasuke, you tried your damned best to kill us on more than one occasion. I don't see how I'm any different. The Leaf is much better off without me, isn't it Yamato?"

It was shocking to Sakura when Naruto wheeled around with rage in his eyes. "You told her that? Are you fucking _serious_?" he screamed. "I'm not losing another teammate, especially her!" Naruto turned back to her with a plead hanging off his lips. He didn't have to say anything for her to know what was on his mind.

"No Naruto, the circumstances of my leave are unforgiveable and unforgettable. I'm not returning to the village until the day I decide to light it up in flames." Her voice was clear and honest and completely too innocent for the words that she was saying.

The sudden chirping of a thousand birds caught everyone's attention as Sasuke positioned himself in front of the army that they had brought. Naruto and Kakashi screamed out for him to stop and come back but Sasuke was already charging forward with his insane speed. So many emotions played on his features as he sprang towards Sakura but he didn't have time to stop when the small smile once again rose on her lips.

It wasn't the sinister side of her nor was it the deceiving side; she smiled the smile that belonged to the old, happy, innocent Sakura that the Leaf was fighting for. He saw the woman that he had loved for so many years but he panicked when he realized that he couldn't stop in time. He would hit her with his Chidori and kill her. Kakashi wouldn't be able to stop him this time from his stupid, impulsive behavior.

With a flash of pink, Sakura suddenly appeared behind the charging man and grabbed him by the back of his shirt. He slammed against his clothing to a stop while his eyes widened and his mouth fell open. She- she was faster than him? Since when?

Kakashi uncovered his sharingan and waited a second for the world to fall into focus once more. He was tense as he watched everything unfold in front of him. For once Naruto wasn't the impulsive one. "I know that we haven't told you much about Sakura, Naruto and Sasuke. We have kept you both from going on the retrieval missions for a reason." He knew very well that his pink haired ex-student was listening in but the boys needed to know before they underestimated her even more. "Sakura is the one that has been killing all the ANBU that you have heard about. She's the missing Nin that has posed a severe threat to every country and Hidden Village. She's the one who is in every damn BINGO book and the very same that is ordered to be killed on sight. She is stronger than any one of us."

They became like fish out of water, gaping at the very possibility that Sakura, _Sakura_, who was their little angel blossom, whose life revolved around the pleasure of others, who dedicated every fiber of her being into to protecting her village, was a true enemy. It was impossible for them to wrap their heads around it and Kakashi knew exactly how it felt. It took him too long to come to the same conclusion.

"But-but that's… no, no she can't be that bad, Kaka-sensei. You're lying!" Naruto yelled, his face slowly turning a bright red color. Was it just Sakura or did she see the slightest bit of tears gathering at the very corners of his eyes?

Kakashi lost his composure at the wild accusation thrown at him. "Look at her Naruto! Take a good hard look and tell me what you see. She has pink hair and you immediately think 'innocent' because that's what she used to be; _used_ to. Sakura has changed and you would be wise to get that through your head before she kills you! I've fought her and have lost every damn time since she has left this village. There is no one here that can lay a finger on her without her actually wanting you to do so. We have hundreds of Nin backing us up right now but if she really wanted to, we would all be dead in minutes. This is a game to her and we are the pawns. She doesn't care anymo…"

The pinkette released Sasuke and was on the silver-haired Jonin in a second, pinning him by his neck to the nearest building while it shook slightly from the impact. To Kakashi's utmost surprise, the amount of betrayal that watered down his ex-student's eyes froze him to the bone. He could see then, barely, but he could see that this was not his fight indeed.

The last remaining Hatake was not stupid nor was he naïve but he couldn't help but chide himself when thinking back to what he had just said. With sudden realization, he knew that Sakura would not kill them nor attack without provocation.

How many times had he come across her in the past four years where she egged him on; where she showed any signs of pure hatred towards him? None. She had always left the Konaha Nin alone and always killed (if necessary) the ANBU from other village. Sakura was still with Team Seven, just she didn't want anyone to know. He could see it in her eyes, in the soul that she never could find the ability to hide.

He wanted to smile, to laugh even, at the knowledge that she had not lost her humanity. Sakura was still Sakura and the world was still turning and with sudden horror, he took one glance over her shoulder and saw the hundreds of Lightning Nin rushing towards them with undeniable power.

This would be a hard fight and this fact was not lost upon the girl as she looked him in the eyes sadly, almost dejectedly. She was ashamed.

"I can tell that you can see it; you are finally starting to see the bigger picture," she whispered, her grip loosening from his neck. "You have a long ways to go but at least you are not completely blind anymore; it's just too blurry for you to exactly see what's going on." A smile gently touched her lips and he realized again that she was whole. She was still the emotional Sakura deep down under her survival skills. She was not lost.

Kakashi wanted to hold her to him, to make sure that she couldn't freaking go anywhere and he wanted her to spill every ounce of information that she had in the extremely intelligent mind of hers but he didn't have time.

She finally released him only to step forward and put her lips at his right ear. "Don't tell them; they must figure it out on their own. Don't trust everyone just because they appear innocent. Pink hair is like a disguise in a way but so are the elderly and the crippled. We may appear weak but nothing is ever as it seems. Look at the big picture Kakashi; you don't have much time before everything you know is going to disappear."

He didn't have time to shake her into telling him the truth like he was seconds from doing because suddenly she was bounding away, flipping over the hundreds of Nin fighting to end her life. He could vaguely see Naruto fighting himself on what to do but Sasuke was in action, forgetting the small epiphany and fear he had right before Sakura stopped him. He was angry again and was going to let every damn person know. He was still trying to prove himself. What a fool.

The woman he used to know had certainly grown in skill and it was proven in the way she just leapt around, untouched by the kunai that every Nin in the empty village had a hand of. She was only a blur of pink, even to the two sharingan wielders, making it that much more impossible for anyone to get to her.

She was like nothing he had ever seen before even though he had watched her grow from a small child. Sakura was grown and it showed with every small movement and every whip of her long hair that was tied into a perfect braid.

It was unbelievable to see that she actually had a smile on her face as if she were enjoying the entire thing. It was easy to figure out why though; no one has actually made her _fight_ in so long because she was so far beyond their level. She hasn't been able to spar with anyone, to test and express her skill. All that is tagged on her name anymore is a number on the lives she's taken and the important political figures who have been unfortunate enough to fall into that category.

She was singlehandedly battling off ANBU who have had much more experience than her without breaking a sweat and without a weapon. She was using her bare hands to pierce their chests with small blasts of chakra that was more than enough to shatter every bone in their chest and kill them with punctured organs. Meanwhile she was also keeping Oruchimaru's ex pupil at bay and _laughing_ at him as he struggled to keep the curse words from leaving his mouth. Of course he was failing miserably but that was the young Uchiha for you; too impulsive.

"You think you're the shit now don't you? Being a missing Nin and surviving is such an impossible task, right?" he sarcastically called after her as she once again flipped over him by pushing off of the top of his head. "Try leaving when you twelve; tell me which one is more impressive!"

A laugh left her lips and it was lightweight as if she were having the time of her life. 'Since when is a fight to the death fun?' Kakashi wondered. 'She used to laugh the same way when Sasuke would merely glance at her or when Naruto would do something stupid to get hurt during the rare Team Seven trainings.'

"I didn't know that me leaving was all for the sole purpose of being more impressive than you, Sasuke. You're getting a little shallow, don't you think?"

She quickly turned on her heel to send two outstretched fingers into the neck of a tall, burly man whose Lightning insignia was tied around his neck. He fell to the ground but she didn't spare him a second glance as she suddenly disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Sasuke skid to a stop right where she last was and the remaining twenty Lightning Nin and forty or so Leaf Nin stopped and looked around in confusion as well. There was no trace of her but the eerie feeling of being watched was so strong that they knew she was still there. She wouldn't run from a fight like this.

Sasuke tilted his head and looked into the dark sky as if it would tell him exactly where she was. "Aren't _you_ tired of playing all these games? I don't think that you even had a real reason to leave the village. You just wanted more attention and congratulations; you got it. Tsunade won't sleep and Naruto is a depressing little shit all the time now. Happy? Are you pleased with the pain you're causing people?"

Silence met him and in the very distance, dark clouds began slipping their way over but he hardly noticed. He was too busy whirling around and trying to anger the deadly kunoichi that was poised for action. He knew she was there, watching him. He just _knew_ it.

Something tickled their noses and they soon realized that it was perfume, Sakura's perfume; the one that they had gotten her for her birthday the year before she left. It was so strong now though and heavy and it weighed upon them like a heavy blanket.

"Oh Sasuke," a sweet voice swirled around the Uchiha, "If only you knew; you wouldn't be patronizing me right now. You would be eating you pride because you are _wrong_." Sakura's voice darkened. "I never intended for this to happen." By the time Sasuke saw the glint of metal it was too late. The kunai pierced his right thigh and forced the blood to seep down his leg and onto his shoe.

He fought back a cry of pain and settled for his angry words instead. "You bitch, just come out already!"

"But you haven't even heard me out yet," the echo called out, sending shivers racing down the spine of every Nin in the town.

Sasuke spun around again to try and locate her from the direction the weapon came but all he could see were the dark shadows of the tall trees. Kakashi noted that his motions were slowing and even his own senses were dulling. 'The scent' he though. 'It's a jutsu.'

"I don't- I don't need to hear you out!"

Kakashi wondered momentarily how someone could possibly evade the sharingan. Just how powerful had she gotten? Even the Akatsuki and Orochimaru couldn't do that…

"You're right; you don't." Sakura suddenly appeared behind him and punched him in the back, sending him flying down a street and into a brick building. That alone was not enough to slow his momentum and he continued clean through the wall and into whatever small store it happened to be.

Sakura stood tall and strong while she flexed her hands in a satisfying way, the new finger-less black gloves making her seem all the tougher. That was what she was though, a tougher Sakura Haruno than what had left the village years ago.

Naruto gaped from a few feet away from her as if she had just sprouted a second head. Sakura wasn't at all like she used to be; she wasn't scared or hesitant. She was resilient.

She didn't move a muscle as Sasuke slowly crawled out of the hole that his body had forcefully made while sporting the meanest glare that his team had ever seen. He was beyond angry, beyond any rage that Itachi had ever driven him in; Sasuke was seeing red and his sharingan spun faster than it ever had.

"You- you traitor."

Sakura's emotions betrayed her then, the hurt was bright and sorrowful just like the situation they were in. Hundreds of dead Nin lay around them as Team Seven once again was fighting to remain whole; to bring back the one member who they thought they would never lose.

No one missed Sakura's momentary weakness and unlike Kakashi and Naruto who pitied her for her current position, Sasuke acted upon it as if she really was an enemy; as if she meant nothing to him.

"Sakura, how could you _ever_ tell me I was wrong in the past for what I did yet here you stand; a murderer and missing Nin as notorious as the Great Sannin? I did what I had to do but now you…"

"And I'm doing what _I _have to do Sasuke! You don't understand and you never will until its right in your fucking face! I had a reason to leave and I just- I couldn't stay there any longer. The knowledge that had been tucked away for so _damn_ long… None of you get it. You can't even begin to understand how big this whole thing really is.

"You're so focused on me and bringing me home that you don't realize that I physically cannot stand to be in that village any longer. It's too painful and too cruel. Don't criticize me when you don't have a _fucking_ clue what is going on!" Sakura was screaming, flying into her own rage. Her emotionless shell was breaking quickly but this was not in the way that they had hoped for it to.

"I do know what's going on! You're trying to trick us into betraying our home; you're trying to taint our minds!"

A sharp laugh escaped from Sakura's mouth. "Me taint you? You betrayed us for revenge, Sasuke; at least I have a valid reason. I am so done with you judging me dammit. I just want to be left alone. I have my plans and none of you are in them so just… go away. Let me be before all hell breaks loose." She shut her eyes and swallowed. "You will see; someday you will see."

Sasuke growled and began pushing chakra into his hand. "No, Sakura, I cannot allow a threat to our village remain alive. Whether you were with us once or you weren't, it doesn't matter now. I can't allow you to live."

The sound of a thousand chirping birds filled the area around them as Sakura's head dipped towards her feet. Naruto's loud cries were drowned out by the explosive chakra in Sasuke's palm.

Sasuke sprang forward suddenly, determined as all get-out to kill her before he changed his mind and had mercy on her. After all, he still loved her.

He couldn't have been more than ten feet ahead of her when he saw the frown that she sported. His eyes latched onto her moving lips in horror as he read her words. "I'm sorry you feel that way."

Suddenly she was gone but reappeared directly in front on him, catching the Chidori in her hand without any emotion. The Lightning jutsu died down while Sasuke stared at her with wide eyes. No one had ever been able to do that; no one could survive that… But she did.

Her eyes were dark and held such a sinister mood that everyone knew that jokes were over and placed aside. This was serious now and only because Sakura chose for it to be. She had complete control over all of them and they knew it.

"I'm done with this, Uchiha. Either you retreat or we fight. I will not give you any mercy and Kami bless you if you think this will change anything. I can destroy you with one punch, I can paralyze you with one tap of my finger, and with the same digit I can shut down your entire chakra system. I know jutsus that even Tsunade has never heard of and I have many, many methods and skills that will aide me in this battle. I have not lost a single one in four years. Keep that in mind."

Sakura didn't move an inch from her position, whereas Sasuke was trembling under her touch. He just couldn't wrap his head around anything anymore; she had _caught _his Chidori as if it was just him throwing a fist.

Naruto and Kakashi were forgotten to the two figures standing in the middle of rubble while the rest of the Konaha Nin that weren't in Team Seven stood on the sidelines. Most of them weren't ANBU but they were all friends, or at least past friends, of the pinkette that was so far away them in every way imaginable.

As if she could read their appalled minds, Sakura turned towards them with no emotions to portray her own thoughts. She looked Ino in the eyes but soon moved them to Shikamaru as if the blonde was nothing but a stranger. The act was reciprocated with Choji and Ten-Ten. There was Hinata and Shino and Sai and Kiba. All of them were there and in her eyes they could see that she was not the same Sakura that they had loved. She was colder, uncaring; tainted.

Sakura turned back to stare the Uchiha in the eyes, blood red meeting a fiery jade in a clash of rushing emotions. She didn't want to do it and it was eating her alive just thinking about harming him but she needed to push them away. They couldn't get close until they knew.

"Make your choice Sasuke. Walk away now or fight," the pinkette said monotonously, resembling a tone Sai might have used in his first years on Team Seven. She was so cold and detached that it pained her team's heart just to hear her words.

She knew the instant that the tomoes in his eyes began to spin frantically that his decision had been made. A fight was inevitable and there was nothing that could have been done. Sakura was fighting a raging battle in her own mind between the two sides that she was fighting for; the good and the bad in which both happened to be separated by a barely-there line. She didn't have any more options.

The pinkette frowned deeply and lowered her head for a split second before jade met red once more. "Then a fight you shall get."

The small, delicate hand wrapped around Sasuke's hand suddenly clamped shut and shattered every bone that it came into contact with. Veins popped in her wrist and her muscles rippled as she one-handedly twirled around and launched the Uchiha further into the abandoned village.

It had all happened so quick that no one knew what had actually happened, only that Sasuke's screams of pain meant that he was already at a disadvantage. A blur of pink ran after the loud crash that followed the boy's landing and she was upon him in a second, grabbing him by his shirt and pushing him away from the broken hole in the wall and into the dirt street.

She only expressed anger, and anger that was fueled only from being forced to do such things that she knew could have been avoided if it had been up to her. She would have gladly walked away from the entire situation but no; Sasuke took it upon himself to indulge in his violent desires. _Idiot_.

"Fight Sasuke; you wanted a fight and now you've got one. Prove how weak I am!" She roared. "Show me how I'm just doing it all for attention!"

She sprinted forward, barely being blocked by a panting Sasuke as he had just pulled out a kunai in time to block the one she had extracted from her boot. Metal clashed against metal loudly as a humorless cackle escaped the lips of the kunoichi.

Sasuke could only just keep up against Sakura as she unleashed a power that he could have never imagined her possessing. With startling realization he saw how she was only using taijutsu. He was utterly stunned to know that she was kicking his ass with no chakra. It was downright impossible.

Series of scratches littered his exposed skin and her weapons continuously cut into the deep blue shirt that clung to his bloody body. He couldn't catch his breath in time for her next attack since it was just wave after wave of senbon being ejected from her tightly closed lips and mere flicks of her finger that sent shuriken chasing after him.

She stopped suddenly and Sasuke tried to take advantage of her falter by hurtling a kunai at the side of her head but she snagged it out of the air without even turning her head. He didn't know at first what was capturing her attention but it was worrisome enough to make her eyebrows scrunch in impeccable concentration.

A sigh that was barely audible escaped her lips. "I'm sorry but we are going to have to have this meeting another time. I'm in the middle of something." Her voice was clipped and blunt, clearly indicating that she was not going to take anything less than her request.

Kakashi and Naruto thought she was talking to them but they obviously knew they were wrong when four figures appeared a little ways in front of her. Almost every eye widened to see the Akatsuki members and it didn't help with the way they were assessing the scene.

They were impressed immensely that this girl had made Sasuke look like he was new to the Academy. Sasuke, the one who had left Konaha to be trained under Sannin Orochimaru; Sasuke, the avenger of his clan; Sasuke, the one who believed he was better than everyone else... he had been made to be miniscule in seconds by the one who he picked apart the most as a child. She was stronger than him and it surprised everyone beyond belief.

Sasuke gaped at his brother who wore the familiar black cloak and then turned with undeniable anger to Sakura. "You're with the Akatsuki now? When the hell did this happen?" he was demanding an answer but even to Sakura it sounded more as if he were trying to convince himself that it all wasn't true; that he wasn't losing her all over again.

Her eyes danced with amusement and the members of her team couldn't fathom for even a second what part of this situation was funny. She stood in all her glory with all eyes on her; she was the center of everyone's attention. Her pink hair no longer stood for innocence when the blood that stained her hands shone so brightly. Her stance was no longer that of a girl longing for independence and a sense of pride, it was that of a lethal killer that attacked and dodged with grace and elegance. She was as mesmerizing as she was dangerous and it drew them all in like a moth to flame.

"No Sasuke, I am not with them."

Sasori stepped forward, earning a quick glance from the pinkette. "Yes, you are coming with us. We have orders that we do not intend to change."

A short bark of a laugh bounced in the air. "You are delusional if you think I'm doing anything that you say."

The red-head absolutely despised her defiance but respected her for it too. She stood her ground.

A loud, angry yell sounded from the edge of the forest and they all turned to see a red faced Naruto. "Sakura-chan is going back home with us! She would never stay with the likes of you!"

Kisame chuckled. "Your little _Sakura-chan_ isn't exactly on the best of terms with your village right now and if you want her alive then I don't think bringing her back with you is the best of ideas." The shark man grinned at the shivers of some of the Leaf Nin at his input. Samehada pulsed on his back, sensing the immense chakra in the area and he tried to ignore it since it wasn't needed at the moment but his eye immediately met a brilliant jade.

Deidara himself was entranced in her beautiful eyes just as much as Kisame was; the way that her eyes shone in the moonlight was art all in its own. What he would do to be able to capture that beauty…

Sasuke grew angrier with every second that Itachi just looked at him emotionlessly and he thought of the countless many ways that he could try and end his life but he knew that if he couldn't even beat Sakura then there was no way in hell he could touch his brother. He still wasn't strong enough.

"I'm going with no one," the kunoichi spoke suddenly. "I'm going to leave here and anyone who follows will get their teeth knocked in. I'm too damn tired to be dealing with this."

Sasori frowned. "We have orders…"

"Well you can take those orders and shove them up your ass for all I care." Sakura snapped, thoroughly growing aggravated with every word that left anyone's mouth.

It was Itachi's turn to intervene when he concluded that they were getting nowhere. "If you don't come with us then we will take you."

A smirk, a dark laugh, a tilt of the head, the glint of kunai; they almost didn't see it coming.

It took only a second for Kisame to be launched halfway across the village, Deidara to be at the bloody bottom of a ten-foot deep crater, Sasori to have his wooden limbs sprawled all around them, and for Itachi to be held by his neck on the nearest brick wall.

There wasn't one person in the entire area who wasn't thinking the same thing.

What. The. Fucking. Hell.


	4. Chapter 3-Too Much To Deal With

pter 2- Too Much to Deal With

Kisame was cussing loud enough for her to clearly hear his anger and it added to her amusement to see Itachi's wide, stunned eyes. She was fast, faster than they could have ever imagined. She was proud as hell.

The pinkette stepped closer to the eldest Uchiha and put her face only inches from his while looking him dead center in the eye. Since when did anyone ever dare to do that to the sharingan wielder?

"Don't. Underestimate. Me." She spoke clearly and threateningly through her teeth.

"Don't worry," he responded. "I won't."

She leapt back just in time to avoid the katana that he had suddenly unsheathed from beneath his cloak. He hadn't had very many incidences where he had to chase after someone else since most of the time he could kill someone with a simple genjutsu and a slit of the throat but it wasn't working on her. The sharingan was failing him for the first time in his life.

"What the hell are you?" He ground out as she once again deflected a blow with a simple flick of a kunai. She still had not used a single ounce of chakra and it was getting on his nerves fairly quickly.

"A simply misunderstood girl." She called out, pink braid chasing after her quick and abrupt movements.

Every attempted slice, every precise jab; nothing would even come close to touching her. She would be there one second but gone the next and she was everywhere but nowhere.

Somewhere between him whirling around to cut her stomach open and her disappearing again, a weight landed on his back while a slim arm tilted his head at an awkward angle. The tip of a kunai pressed precariously against his jugular.

"I win." It was barely a whisper; a soft contrast to what she was truly capable of. It unnerved him the way her cool hands were so soft yet so strong, completely holding him the exact way that she wanted him.

Before he could react, she was gone and appearing behind Sasuke next. All Itachi saw was the pink blur and feral smirk before Sasuke was sent flying through the air like a damn rag doll. His head hit the ground first and then his back but, unable to catch himself, kept ferociously flipping and slamming into the ground until he eventually rolled to a stop, unconscious.

She was standing over him in the blink of an eye, finger on her lip and her eyes gentle. "It's a wonder what a little chakra can do, huh?"

Kisame was growling and Deidara was just standing up, both of them rearing to see the kunoichi's blood spill on the ground. They were already fed up with her antics.

"Stop with the games! Do you not see the position that you're in? You'll die just because no one wants to deal with you," Neji suddenly spoke. Surprised faces turned to him but his eyes remained on the kunoichi who slowly turned to face him. He wanted to see it, where her true power was coming from. He couldn't believe that it was all her. Sakura wasn't this strong; it was impossible.

"You think that any of you are capable of killing me?" She was astounded that they _still_ denied her power even after seeing it with their own eyes.

"Yes, we just don't want to. We know that you are still the same old Sakura; weak, boring… _annoying_." He knew what heartstrings to play on since they had been such close friends before her departure.

It was instantaneous, the change in her eyes. As if she had been cursed with a demon, everything about her darkened and even her chakra seemed to take a more sinister signature. Sakura… Sakura was pissed.

"I'm not weak." She said, looking at the ground with a grim expression. She shook her head gently before glancing at him from the corner of her eye. "It's a shame you didn't pay attention before. Maybe you would have thought different and I wouldn't have to prove it."

She appeared in front of him, making him stumble back in surprise. He hadn't even seen her take a step toward him, let alone crossing a town square that fast. She had her feet placed right next to the other and her arms were at her sides.

"Come on Neji, show me how _weak_ I am."

He lunged forward with his blood limit glaring at her. Veins rose on his face around his eyes as he swung his glowing palm towards her. If he could just hit her chest once then he could knock her out…

Just as his hand was about to make contact with her, Neji felt his entire body freeze up and collapse from under him. A small gasp was heard from where his comrades were which he figured to be Hinata. He just couldn't understand…

"I don't need a fucking blood limit know where your chakra points are. I know each one by heart. Unlike you, I don't need some fancy ass fighting method to completely take out my opponents. One tap of my finger and I could shut down a Nin's entire chakra system." Her voice was so dark, so detached. She lifted her cold eyes from the Hyuuga and glared at everyone around them.

"Do you fucking get it now? I'm a missing Nin for a reason; you can't prance in here like a bunch of damn idiots and not expect to get your asses handed to you. I'm not the same person that I was and get that through your _thick ass heads_ before I do it for you." She lifted her arms away from her body. "How many people do I have to injure and kill tonight before you realize that I'm serious, huh?"

"Just come back to us, Sakura-chan! Why did you have to leave?" Naruto was desperate, that much she could hear from his voice. She didn't have the guts to even look at his face.

"I'm not coming back Naruto. You don't understand."

"Then make me understand! You're my best friend and we've done so much together. We brought Teme back and we fought as a team for years… Why are you leaving just when everything was falling together?"

"Because nothing was ever falling together, Naruto!" She screamed suddenly with such force that Kakashi grimaced. "Everything has been falling _apart_ for years and no one has seen it! I'm not going to devote every ounce of my life to a group of people who deserve to _die_!"

Suddenly, a kunai was launched at her head from the Konaha side. The kunoichi's head slowly turned and immediately met eyes with TenTen. The weapon specialist was angry but for once, fear was deeply imbedded in her eyes.

It didn't matter anymore. They wouldn't take her seriously no matter what she did and she just couldn't hold on to the anger that was so heavy on her shoulders.

"That's it. I'm _done_!"

They didn't stand any chance, not that they ever did. An explosion went off right after the pinkette disappeared from view right next to the people she had grown up with. They all cried out and dove to safety but the next attack was already upon them as the ground under their feet was obliterated into nothing. Buildings crumbled under the tremendous pressure of her strength as she dove across the square to the Akatsuki.

She grabbed onto Kisame's sleeve and launched him into Deidara. They both slammed into the building next to them and crumbled it. Itachi was suddenly lifted up by his neck but his eyes could barely catch a hint of pink before he was face down in the dirt, a good hundred feet from where he was just standing.

Sasori was smart enough to not try and find her with his eyes but even while listening for her feet, he wasn't fast enough to avoid being punched head on with a chakra-laced fist. He was sent spiraling after the elder Uchiha and just narrowly stopped himself from landing on top of the already pissed Nin.

Two more explosions went off simultaneously a distance away, or so they thought. They watched as Sasuke and Choji emerged from two separate craters looking like they had just been hit by trains. Cries of pain could be heard from the blonde kunoichi on the Konaha side as leaves spun around her in sharp swirls. It took one more second for the Hyuuga heiress to be unconscious on the ground with absolutely no access to her chakra.

Just as she suddenly appeared, flames erupted from her mouth and lit trees and roofs on fire with such intensity that it burned all of their skins just to be near it. She was gone just as quick as she had appeared.

Itachi spotted her on a distant roof after that, staring at the complete chaos that she left in her wake. Screams of pain, emotional and physical, were completely rattling what had been such a peaceful place only an hour before.

Itachi, immediately thinking of the absolute hell that the leader would give them if they didn't follow through with orders, thought up a plan as quickly as possible.

"Deidara, follow her on a bird the second that she leaves. We can't let her get away; it took too long to find her. Kisame, go with him. Sasori and I will take care of everything here."

Deidara and Kisame nodded as the blonde made a series of hand signs. Although it was the quickest and most efficient way to do their job, Kisame couldn't help but grimace at having to be so far up in the air again. _Sharks just aren't meant to be up in the damn clouds_.

As soon as the flush of pink hair was gone, the clay bird launched itself into the air with the two Akatsuki on its back. They could barely keep up with her though, even with Deidara pushing wave after wave of chakra into his creation's wings to make it go faster.

"Damn, she's a little speedy, don't you think?" Kisame grumbled, sitting down and crossing his legs. "This is too much trouble for one kunoichi."

"But she's not just some kunoichi you find anywhere, un. Did you see what happened back there? She's incredible." Deidara's eyes seemed to glint with excitement just thinking about the girl.

Kisame rolled his eyes at seeing this. "Calm the hell down Sparky, I'm pretty sure that I _felt_ her power rather than have _seen _it. The girl's got one hell of a right hook." He rubbed his sore chest that was sure to be bruising. "She's not someone that I want to be the enemy of."

Deidara glanced at him. "Who would want to be her enemy? She would make one damn fine addition to any village, yeah."

Kisame looked damn at her again. "Then I wonder why she doesn't have one. There aren't many missing Nin in this world that started out with such a good life. Something had to go wrong somewhere between now and the last time I saw her. She used to be so gung-ho on teamwork but she completely just broke all ties."

Deidara briefly remembered what she had been like the day she had first killed Sasori. He had only caught a glimpse of her but even that was enough to see how determined she was to protect the very people she had just attacked. "They must've rattled the wrong dog cage, yeah."

Kisame seemingly ignored him and carried on. "And how many Nin have we come across that wasn't affected by the sharingan? I've been Itachi's partner for years and that's never happened before. Something… she's got something huge up her sleeve."

"She has to. She was completely confident when we first caught her. She was _happy_ that we found her. That kunoichi has much more to her than meets the eye, yeah." Deidara looked down at the ground again for the zipping girl but he was startled to see her standing on the shore of the Capitol River while staring straight up at them. "Should we…"

A grin quickly appeared on Kisame's face which only made Deidara's stomach flip with nerves. He only did that when the fool was planning to…

With a loud whoop, Kisame grabbed Deidara by the scruff of his collar and launched them both over the edge of the bird. The blonde wanted to slit his partner's throat for doing this for the umpteenth time even though they would be okay anyways. They were always okay which is exactly what the shark man argued with each and every time it happened. It didn't make him any less angry whenever it did occur though.

The two landed on the water almost silently, Deidara fuming in anger while Kisame was grinning like a maniac. The kunoichi watched with amusement as the pair had a staring contest before turning back to her. She crossed her arms over her chest and put all of her weight on one leg.

She tried her damn best to flood chakra to her head to keep the migraine away so that they didn't see her in pain. Her pink hair was wildly disheveled but there wasn't a scratched on her entire body, not that the Akatsuki had expected there to be.

"It's about time that you stop," Kisame called out to her with interest.

She watched as the Mad Bomber looked around as if attempting to pinpoint a surprise attack that she had set up. They were lucky that she hadn't; she wouldn't have failed if her true intention was to end their lives.

"I had no reason to keep running. The Leaf Nin stayed put."

Kisame examined her even more intently. "So why did you fight us if we didn't provoke you first?"

She smiled sweetly at him. "I couldn't just let them think I was with you. I haven't been introduced to Pein yet. It's only common courtesy."

Deidara smiled, liking her confidence. He loved a girl that was sure of herself. "What makes you think that we were bringing you back to be one in our group?"

Her laugh suddenly tingled in their ears. "Akatsuki doesn't procrastinate when it comes to assassinations. A group of two is sent in depending on the strength of the target and the said person is taken out as soon as possible. Sasori wouldn't have asked for the door to be opened. You all would have been through the window and standing over me in an instant. Akatsuki also doesn't just ask to hang out with random woman that could break every bone in their body with a finger. There has to be a reason. That reason just so happens to be recruiting me. Otherwise, Itachi wouldn't have had you follow me." He also loved girls who can figure out an entire situation in seconds with nothing but logic. He _adored_ it.

With a sly smile, the blonde brushed a lock of hair out of his face. "You're right; but how do you know that there is something else to the recruitment? How can you be so sure that there isn't something else to it?"

Sakura pursed her lips for a split second. "I just singlehandedly killed a few hundred Lightning shinobi, paralyzed half of Konaha's best, and knocked half of the Akatsuki on their asses; I'm pretty sure that if that isn't recruitment material than there will never be a new member in your little _group_." He couldn't help but watch the way her eyes fluttered the slightest bit when she giggled…

"So you're going to come with us now without a fight?" Kisame questioned.

"Why fight when you're all just gonna follow me until I do agree to go with you? It would make it easier to hear Pein out than just keep running."

"So all that," Kisame said, eyeing her up in down. Never in all his years had he ever met someone like her. Someone confident, someone so strong, someone so damn beautiful and deadly at the same time. "All that was just for show, for nothing?"

The girl smiled at them and couldn't help but feel that they were already wrapped around her finger. "Oh I definitely had a reason. Everything I do has a reason; remember that."


	5. Chapter 4- Addition

Chapter 4- Addition

They were the absolute worst company she had ever had the displeasure of being with. She put all her faith into believing that the first hour of them glancing at her every few seconds was just because they were wary of her; after all, she was just as dangerous as they were and would put up one hell of a fight if the need would arise. However, the stares didn't stop and neither did the constant flicker of a hand into their coats. They were fully prepared to launch all of their weapons at her in the split second of a resistance. She hated it.

If Sakura had been aware that this would have been how they would travel then she would have suggested something entirely different or maybe even possibly making it harder for them and run away completely.

They had been traveling through woods that were thick with trees and bushes and random jutting rocks from the ground. The only sound that reached her ears were the constant thudding of feet on branches as they practically flew through the air. The sun had long risen into the sky and passed over them along with the hours of the day.

She hated the sound of their fluttering cloaks. It drew too much attention; they were too noisy.

She hated the way that the second her eyes left the land in front of her, their bodies would tense and their hands would once again disappear into their cloaks. They didn't trust her and were willing to attack her in an instant.

She _loathed_ the way that Kisame squinted in the slightest bit with a touch of a grin dancing on his blue lips. She hated his cockiness.

She _loathed _the way Deidara constantly looked down at his hands and didn't hesitate to pick dry bits of clay out of the smiling mouths in his palms. She hated how utterly sinister it looked.

She absolutely _loathed_ the pair with everything in her that it physically hurt not to shove a kunai in either of their throats.

Despite all of this, she maintained a professional persona all the while planning out their untimely deaths in her mind… vividly.

It was hours later when the first fireflies began to twinkle around them like stars touching the Earth so far below their feet. It was around that time that she had to slow down more and more and more until they were traveling at a speed that was child's play for even a Jounin. It pissed her off.

"Why are we slowing down?" She ground out, trying desperately to ignore the flinch that the blonde to her left gave. Since when was a simple question so damn intimidating?

Kisame gave her a long, sideways glance before looking ahead again. "We are probably going to be stopping here for the night. I'm just look for a place with a few less rocks to dig into our backs."

"No," she suddenly said and promptly sped up to prove her point even further. It was a fat chance in hell that she was going to let them make _any_ decisions for her.

The two practically froze before speeding to catch up to her. "What do you mean 'no'?"

She could feel her eyes narrowing into slits. "I mean 'no'. I'm not going to be sleeping here tonight so you might as well pick up the speed unless you two want to be out here longer than you have to be."

"Since when do you get to make all of the decisions, yeah?" Deidara questioned, glaring at her in return as if it were second nature to him.

She pushed herself to go faster. "I know these woods like the back of my hand. I lived out here for about six months a few years ago and we'll never get sleep with the amount of mosquitos and bandits that are constantly bugging you." She vaguely wondered if she could make herself even calmer than she was already pretending to be.

The blonde snorted. "Bugs and thieves are the least of my worries."

"Yes, since us almighty shinobi are so strong and fast we can definitely outrun a few thousand bugs that carry flesh-eating and fatally fever-inducing illnesses especially in these warm and moist conditions that will kill you quicker than the thieves that are counting on just that. Those men hide out in these parts just waiting until the stupid and ignorant drop like flies and then they go in for gold. Don't undermine me, Deidara; I didn't make it this far with just strength." The amount of sarcasm in her voice was practically drowning each word that she spoke.

Sakura quickly interpreted their silence as a win for her so they continued along at a neck-breaking speed that barely allowed their feet to touch the surface of a branch before they were on to the next.

The annoying habits of her traveling partners had stopped, probably at the point of being proved wrong by a woman, and it unfortunately gave way to the wandering thoughts that plagued her mind.

Her plan was getting harder and harder to follow with the recent events that had unexpectedly risen. She had never counted on the Akatsuki knocking on her door; she had never counted on the Leaf and Lightning shinobi to even think of attacking her so soon since her last personal mission to sabotage them, and she most certainly didn't count on Hatake Kakashi to see past her veil of nonchalance. Her damn ex-sensei was making everything harder again.

"We are almost there," a sudden voice interrupted her careful thinking, which led her gaze from her feet to her right side where Kisame gave a wide-toothed grin. "You excited to meet Leader?"

"It doesn't matter. As long as he cooperates with me then I will be pliable with him."

The shark-man gave a long, low whistle. "Kid, if you go in there with that attitude then Pein will let you bleed out and then gut you on the floor. He doesn't take shit from anyone; not even the Uchiha."

She was almost positive that he added _'Not that he ever does anything wrong to start with.'_

"So what do you think I should do; bow down and speak when spoken to?" She asked. Kisame gave her a deadpan look that indicated that that was exactly what was wanted from her. She looked away from him once again. "Well then he has something coming because I don't trust or respect those who I've just met. You earn that from me."

Deidara gave a bark of laughter. "And how does one win the respect of Haruno Sakura?"

"I don't quite know. No one has been able to do it yet."

The blonde rolled his eyes but secretly admired her honesty, no matter how vague it was. He remembered when he himself had been in her very situation, traveling with two Akatsuki members to go meet Pein. He had been scared out of his wits but she didn't seem even phased. If anything, Sakura appeared aggravated at the entirety of it.

Just as she was about to ask about their arrival, a strange feeling came over her and in response, her feet landed softly on a branch and stayed there. She glanced all around her before figuring out immediately what the cause of her unease was.

The amount of wind she felt on her skin differentiated from the amount of wind that was tossing the leaves on the trees around her. A strong gust hit her but an even stronger (barely) one hit the trees.

She bowed her head, made a sign, and muttered 'Kai' under her breath. As soon as the syllable had crossed her lips, a passage of stairs revealed itself directly beneath her; stone and obviously worn by time.

"Holy shit, no one's figured it out by themselves before," she heard Kisame say with surprise.

"Well then how do you keep the average shinobi from finding this? It wasn't that hard; whoever set the genjutsu didn't keep the wind even. It was quite noticeable." Sakura didn't even try to conceal the slight pride she felt.

As the three jumped down and landed simultaneously, Deidara took the first step and grinned wickedly at her. He held up his right hand so that the ring on his pointer finger glimmered slightly in the moonlight. "You need one of these and to know that the genjutsu is even there for any of the Akatsuki bases to be shown."

"And if anyone is smart enough to pass through even then?" She asked, allowing herself to look straight into the blonde's crystal blue eyes.

His grin deepened. "Then they wouldn't be smart, would they? No one should be stupid enough to enter any Akatsuki base and expect to leave alive."

Not wanting to hear any more, she followed the two men down the flight of stairs as her eyes strained against the darkness. In the distance, shouting could be heard as clear as day and the crashing and smashing of objects didn't evade her intense senses either.

Kisame sighed as they finally reached the bottom and a series of torches on both sides of the halls erupted into flames. "Hidan's throwing a tantrum again."

"No doubt that it's Tobi's fault, yeah." Deidara added distastefully.

"It could be Kakazu's too. Last time Hidan made a sacrifice in the living room, Stitches went ballistic about the blood on the carpet. The cheap bastard didn't want to buy a new one." Kisame chuckled while turning his head to look at Sakura. "I can't wait for you to meet the Zombie Brothers. You'll kick their asses into next year most likely. They're…" He struggled to find the word.

"Insufferable?" The pinkette offered.

Kisame's eyes gleamed along with his sharp rows of teeth. "Precisely."

The three came to a sudden stop when the brick wall before them exploded as two bodies came crashing through it and onto the middle of the floor. The white-haired arrogant bastard was holding a squealing orange-masked man by his neck while a steady stream of curses flowed from his mouth.

They didn't take any notice to the Kisame, Deidara, or Sakura even when a bundle of black strings crossed through the broken hole in the wall, attached onto the ankles of Hidan and Tobi, and slowly dragged them back into the room they were in previously.

Sakura looked at the two men on either side of her with raised eyebrows but they ignored her with gentle shrugs of indifference.

"So they both pissed him off," Kisame suddenly said and continued forward while avoiding the thick, broken bricks on the floor as if nothing had happened.

They stepped over the rubble and ignored the tortured and livid screams of those through the broken wall as they continued on through the twisted halls of the Akatsuki base.

Strangely enough, she didn't feel as if she were an outsider though. Not when the boys continued to shoot her odd glances over their shoulders, not when they came upon a wooden door at the end of a long corridor, and especially not when they entered into a large indoor arena with one orange-haired shinobi in the middle.

He looked angry, Sakura noted, which just made his features even harsher with all of the piercings. The man looked pale and sickly but she contributed it to the lack of sun that he must get when hiding away underground all the time.

Kisame and Deidara stood on either side of her as the obvious leader, Pein, glared a hole into the center of her face. She was actually happy that his aggravation was pointed at her.

"Hello, Oh Mighty One." She gracefully sank into a low bow and mentally clapped herself on the back in self-appreciation when she heard the two members beside her stifle their laughs.

A wide grin swept across her face when she righted herself and found Pein only a few feet away from her. Oh, he was beyond livid with his eyes practically burning flames of hatred. Only, he didn't hate her which she only knew because he wasn't trying to stuff a kunai into her head yet.

"So," his voice was icy calm. "You're the one who made my organization appear to be a load of pansies. Would you care to explain how you did it and why you came here after?" Never had she heard such a deep, menacing tone that didn't affect her in the slightest bit. She contributed it to her growth of fearlessness. Her ego grew tenfold.

"Well," she smiled and crossed her arms behind her head. "It just so happens that I'm very skilled at what I do and am very determined to get what I want. As for my returning with your mates here; I just didn't have anything better to do as of the moment."

His eyes narrowed dramatically. "Kisame, Deidara; leave." There was obviously no room for argument and they promptly followed their given instructions, disappearing out of the door they had come in through.

She snorted. "So you have them trained for obedience? Impressive." Sakura knew that taunting him probably wasn't the smartest damned thing to do but it as what she did best and she'd be damned if it didn't get her what she wanted most of the time.

"As a matter of fact, I do. I see that you will be joining with Hidan in being the only ones who don't listen to me and give me a hard time."

Sakura's eyebrows shot up. "What makes you think I want to join the Akatsuki?"

"You wouldn't have come here if you didn't."

"So you know, _Pein_; I do many things without reasoning. But, I happened to have come here to listen to what you have to offer in order to keep me in the Akatsuki. So, what do you have?" She sounded so sure of herself that it made him want to laugh. It was so refreshing to have a conversation with a civilized person that actually expressed emotions.

"You think that I have an offer for you? How about, stay and work for me or we kill you?"

Her laugh spilled out of her mouth as her pink locks swayed with her shuddering body. "Kill me? How 'bout you lose that possessive ass tone before I destroy this entire base and gut every living Akatsuki member left? That sounds damn well appealing to me right this moment. Think of another offer." He didn't miss the underlying anger and truth to her words. She wouldn't hesitate to cripple this organization just for getting off on the wrong foot with the leader… How impulsive.

Before he could actually think of something else to give the kunoichi in turn for her loyalty, she spoke again. "Pein, you have to understand that I have an agenda and that if I was to join you, there will be times when Akatsuki won't have my full attention. There are other things, big things that are so much bigger than a band of criminals." Her eyebrows furrowed slightly as her mind sorted through the massive amounts of information that resided in such.

The orange-headed man smirked at the girl who was significantly shorter than him. She was so small and innocent looking that if it weren't for Zetsu appearing an hour ago to tell him that all of the chaos caused on the border was her fault, he would completely take this girl as being a regular civilian.

When he looked close enough, those thoughts changed.

Her hair was long enough to pull out of the way for battle but still healthy so seduction missions would be a breeze. Her arms had undeniable muscles underneath the tight, black mesh shirt she sported and the same went for her tight toned abdomen and thighs. Women rarely had forms like this unless they were skilled kunoichi with large amounts of stamina hidden under their soft skin. Her feet were flat on the ground but positioned for quick movement, perfect for a sudden attack that she would have to dodge from. Her face was relaxed and her eyes remained on him but he picked up on the dark bags under her hides that she hid with a genjutsu. There was a shimmer that was too bright for her pale skin. She woman had obviously been having a rough time lately but damn did she hide it well.

"Everyone in the Akatsuki has their own agendas and as a pledge to get you to join us, I promise to allow my shinobi to follow you if you ever need assistance with your own battles. If your… plans involve a war, then we shall be in a war. I have not promised this to anyone here so consider yourself lucky." He remained emotionless even when he found amusement in the surprise that flickered over her face.

"You would allow me to have the Akatsuki at my disposal? Well wouldn't that come in handy, huh?" A bright smile crossed her lips but even in its sweetness, he could see the threats and the deadly aura and the strength and the malice that hung in the balance with it. She was not one to be underestimated. "I think that is deal enough. You sure know how to haggle."

He smirked. "Yes, well you're not the first member who wanted something in return for his entrance here."

She raised an eyebrow. "Did you give him what he wanted?"

His smirk deepened. "No, I threw him through a wall for trying to strike a deal with me instead of following my orders."

"Oh, so I'm just special? I'm honored."

"You should be. So, would you like to explain to me how you did what you did? I don't think anyone has created such a row with so many different alliances of shinobi in such a short amount of time. Since you've only been a missing Nin for such a short amount of time, something must be fueling the flame to keep you going down the path you have chosen to take." Pein watched carefully her eyes darkened and a sinister smile curled her lips upward.

The kunoichi glanced down at the black, fingerless gloves on her hands and fiddled with the tight strap on her wrist that held them firmly into place. "_Leader-sama_, I have many, many talents and lots of skills for many different things to go along with them. I have perfected tai-jutsu and my gen-jutsus are malicious and will tear down the will and strength of even the best shinobi. I have endless amounts of tricks up my sleeves. I have scars that will never go away, which is what every one of the shinobi in Akatsuki has. It's what keeps us going, it's what drives us to wake up every day and _live_. Trust me when I say there is something huge coming up and these past four years of being alone… not a second has gone to waste in preparing for what it to come. It will change the shinobi world as we know it."

Pein looked surprised. "And you plan to do this all on your own?"

She nodded. "It's not impossible which means that I can do it. I know I can." Sakura swiftly turned towards the door and fully intended to go find an empty room to collapse in but she stopped when he name was called by the man behind her.

"Sakura… Welcome to the Akatsuki."


End file.
